Life's too short to live without poetry...

If you'd the chance to see President Obama's inauguration yesterday, you'd have seen James Taylor, Beyonce, Kelly Clarkson, the Harlem Tabernacle Choir, and the President's Own Marine Band, as well as various politicians contributing to global warming. But we had a poet, too - 44 year old Richard Blanco read One Today, and as I eventually caught the rhythm, I really enjoyed it.

Poetry today is in a bind, as we hear it primarily in popular music: Hip-hop is everywhere, and it's poetry through and through, but it's driven by popular music tastes, which more and more is dictated by corprorate interests.

You Tube and other websites give poets a chance to get their art out there, but it's hard. Poetry has always demanded more of its audience than other art forms. It demands more imagination, careful listening, and patience. But like all art forms, its rewards surpass the efforts.

I read a bit of poetry every morning: A Year With Rilke, 365 snippets of my personal favorite, Rainer Maria Rilke, a German poet of the early 20th Century. He traveled through Vienna, Paris (where he stayed with the famous sculptor Rodin) and Prague, but his poetry is hardly ever evocative of those great cities - it's so personal, so internal, that it becomes universal: Everyone who can read can feel what he felt, see what he saw. He's just a great guy to spend a bit of time with every day.

My Irish poet is W.B.Yeats because he's the most famous, and I'm too lazy to explore further. I've memorized the Fiddler of Dooney, (just ask me sometime) and I'm working on "The Second Coming" because if any poem drew a picture of 21st Century American politics, it's that one. I love Seamus Heaney, a living Irish poet, but most of what I read of his is his translation of Beowulf, which is so ancient as to transcend national boundaries.

We celebrate this very week the Scottish poet Robert Burns, and I've memorized more of his work than any other, as I've sung his songs now for five years or more: My Love is Like a Red Red Rose, Ae Fond Kiss, Ca' the Yowes, A Man's A Man for A' That, and a few more. To read Burns is hard work - I am not Scottish, so that old Scots dialect does NOT roll off my tongue, but his insight, wit, charm and passion just pour off the page - it's just a joy to sing, to hear, to read...

Poetry fills the pages of the Old Testament. I'm surprised now and then that the New Testament did not ever include its own Book of Psalms, but I guess they made do with the old book. Folks think old Amos was the first poet to get his lines written down in one place, although he wasn't the first of God's prophets, he got published before the others. His words evoke in so much the same way...

He who created the Pleiades and Orion,
Who turns deep darkness into morning
and darkens day into night
Who calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out on the surface of the earth
Yahweh is his name...   (Amos 5.8)

Simple words to describe the created world, and find the Creator's fingerprints. We need poets to do such things, as ordinary people, doing ordinary things every day all day, we don't see it, and we sure can't say it if we do see it. We need other's words, sometimes, to make sense, and to describe the beauty we so often miss.

Poetry. Life's too short to live without it.

Preacher's Reading List...part one

Things I never expected to see:
No.1: Carol's poking in the Military History
 at Barnes and Noble.

I Wonder What the Pastor is Reading Tonight...

It's a time-honored bit of wisdom: Garbage in, garbage out. You are what you eat.

 I seem to remember a Native American fable about a young warrior who consulted his medicine man about dreams that bothered him. He related the dreams about two wolves, one white as snow, the other black as night. One seemed to embody everything good in him - family, faith, love, loyalty, bravery; while the other embodied lust, violence, fear and hatred. He saw these two wolves at war with each other - inside his own soul.
The medicine man nodded and after a while responded that these two wolves symbolized the two natures inside the young man - two natures that seem to be present in just about everyone, come to think of it. The young warrior wasn't aware that he shared this internal war with every other human, so he was concerned.
He asked which one would grow stronger and dominate in his life?
The old man answered simply: "The one which you feed."

So how does the Preacher nourish his inner white wolf? With a lot of books, time spent with good people, and a lot of prayer.

So, as far as books are concerned, here's what the preacher reads:

I suppose it goes without saying I read my bible. Bibles in my case: Feel free to come into the study sometime to see if you can guess the total: A total of THREE German bibles, - a facsimile edition of Luther's first translation (in two giant illustrated volumes), an old pulpit bible from a German immigrant congregation in Iowa somewhere, and my Luterbibel 1984 edition from Stuttgart. Carol and I (and Sam and Abby) visited the home of the German Bible Society back in 1999 and had a wonderful time at their 'Bibel Haus Museum.' The Society has produced scholarly editions of Greek and Hebrew texts for over a hundred years now, and it is holy ground for bible lovers world wide.

Which leads to my next treasure, my Hebrew Bible, now known as the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, fifth edition 1997. I can read parts of it nicely (Psalm 1, for instance) but mostly, it's slow going, and I don't read it as much as I dreamed I would in seminary. Ah well.
My Greek Bible is much more useful. The Nestle-Aland 27th Edition 1993 LARGE PRINT: I bought this in Washington State and read it on the bus commuting to the inner city private school where I taught at the time (1995-97), and it's got coffee stains all over it, and packing tape up the spine to boot. The large print was a brilliant choice, because Greek letters can be horrible to read with any speed. It's a joy to work with.  I read the Gospel lessons for Sundays in Greek most weeks, and I prepare bible studies from it as well. It's beat up compared to my Hebrew bible, as you can imagine.

When I was at Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon, back in ... well, way back there,  they made us buy the New Oxford Annotated Bible, a fancy notated edition of the Revised Standard Version. Back in that day, if you were old school, you read King James. If you were hip, you read 'The Living Bible,' with it's puffy  green cover. If you were younger, you read the paperback version, 'The Way' which had pictures filled with flower shirts, bell bottoms, long hair, and Vietnam. I've got both those versions on my shelf here, somewhere, too, if anyone wants to take a trip down memory lane to their church in the 1970's.

Back to the New Oxford...well, it was new then, I suppose. The Revised Standard Version was one I'd never heard of, and I really liked it - it was like half way between the King James and the Living Bible: Elegant, yet hip at the same time.

By the time I got to bible school in Los Angeles years later (1993-94), my wife bought me the new 2nd edition of the New Oxford Annotated Bible, and that's the one that's stuck with me to this day.
I've a hardback version of the Fourth Edition on my desk, but if I'm going anywhere I need a bible, it's the black leather one Carol got me way back when I take. It's in the New Revised Standard Version, which we use every Sunday and, all things considered, is as good as any recent translation out there.

My dad sent me his old King James bible he used to preach out of back in the day: the dedication says it was given by mom, Cliff, Cindy, and Me for Christmas in 1964 - I was all of six months old then, but apparently I agreed with the rest that it was a fine bible. The leather is still supple and warm, and the type is clear as day. It is free from the notes and the other stuff most bibles have in them, and lets the words speak for themselves. Very nice!

And, that's it for bibles, I think. There's probably others worthy of mention, but I'll get to those later, perhaps. In the meantime, keep reading, and feeding the white wolf!

The Friends of Burns and Hamilton Present...

The Friends of Burns and Hamilton Present

Burns Night 2013

A Hearty Celebration of the Great the Bard of Scotland

Poet, Patriot, and Beacon of Liberty and Justice

Robert Burns, on his 254^th Birthday!

Burns Night celebrates all things Scottish: Food and drink, song and story, people and poetry. You need not be Scottish, nor wear a kilt, nor make heads or tails of Burn’s charming Scots dialect. You must, however, love freedom, justice, truth and beauty, for these are the virtues that define the Bard and his people.

Remember, every man dies. Not every man truly lives!

Burns Night 2013

6:30 pm 25 Friday, January 25,2013

Pelican Pointe Club House

Featuring

Songs from Burns and other Scottish sources

Stories and Legends

Sampling of aquavitae

Traditional Scottish Fare

Toasts to the Lasses

Please RSVP by Sunday, January 20^th with Pastor Greg so we can plan better for a wonderful evening.

Directions:  From Weeksville Road south enter Pelican Pointe Drive just north of EC Coast Guard main gate. Turn left on Spoonbill Loop. Turn first right, then first left onto Windborn Loop.

Clubhouse is on the left.

Contact Pastor Greg Yeager at 704 754 6288 or pfrjaeger@gmail.com

 

Why the Friends of Burns and Hamilton?

Because all Lutherans can both love Robert Burns and take pride in the story of Patrick Hamilton. Lutherans and Presbyterians can share this tradition and draw closer the bonds of friendship.

Patrick Hamilton (1504 – February 29, 1528) was a Scottish churchman and an early Protestant Reformer in Scotland. He travelled to Europe, where he met several of the leading reforming thinkers, before returning to Scotland to preach. He was tried as a heretic by Archbishop James Beaton, and burned at the stake in St Andrews.

The sentence was carried out on the same day to preclude any attempted rescue by friends. He burned from noon to 6 PM. His last words were "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit".

His courageous bearing attracted more attention than ever to the doctrines for which he suffered, and greatly helped to spread the Reformation in Scotland. It was said that the "reek of Master Patrick Hamilton infected as many as it blew upon". His fortitude during martyrdom won over Alexander Ales, who had undertaken to convert him, to the Lutheran cause. His martyrdom is unusual in that he was almost alone in Scotland during the Lutheran stage of the Reformation.

Lutherans Study Romans

        For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, ‘The one who is righteous will live by faith.’

 - St Paul's Thesis in chapter 1.

 Luther discovered his best stuff in Romans. John Wesley's heart was 'strangely warmed' in hearing, of all things, Luther's preface to Romans. Karl Barth, the 20th Century's most celebrated theologian, made Romans his starting point in the 1920's.





But because it can be so difficult, often times we just cite individual verses to make our point. The "Romans Road" is an example of taking various verses from the book, and putting them together into something that makes sense. It's not a BAD thing, but it's not quite what St Paul had in mind, either. And I'm thinking the Spirit and St Paul were in agreement, at least here in Romans!

So beginning February 3, we'll be starting a new bible study from start to finish. This will be expository and in depth, so we won't be taking on one chapter a week or glossing over important aspects. This is difficult stuff, but sometimes good things are hard to find, and a little effort in seeking God's Word can really pay off.

As to the rest, I commend you for your duty, and God's blessing be on you!
Pastor Greg.

For a Healthy New Year

On the Journey, In the Promised Land.

In seminary we loved to talk about Juxtaposition. I believe the source was Professor Gordon Lathrop's work - he showed how both the bible and the grand tradition of Christian worship tend to take single images and pair them up in odd ways. I imagine had he watched Glee at the time, he'd call it a 'theological mash-up,' but at the time, the only word for him was 'juxtaposition.' Some examples of this are obvious: The Death of Jesus, and the Victory of Jesus, more or less juxtaposed in the symbol of the Cross. In the water of baptism are 'juxtaposed' the ideas of washing, and the idea of drowning (and rebirth, obviously). We Lutherans sing a Kyrie and a Gloria every Sunday, (save in Lent): the Kyrie, usually somber and plaintive, the Gloria usually soaring and joyful. Mash up!   

In the bible, there's plenty of examples, but no one mashes it up like St Paul:
 But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us.We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies. For while we live, we are always being given up to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may be made visible in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you. (2 Corinthians 4.7-12)
There's meat to grind there: "Always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies." I can spend some time meditating on THAT mash-up, at least.

What I have discovered about Good Shepherd here this last year is another mash-up, another juxtaposition: The Journey and the Promised Land. Obviously, those are biblical themes - Moses led the Children of Israel for forty years in the wilderness before he led them across Jordan into the Promised Land. The Journey for us is obvious - the mission statement of our church says we 'invite you to join us on a journey of discipleship, following Jesus.' That's as good a mission as I can imagine. And yet, here we are in a brand new building, on our own eleven acres of Holy Land. Promised Land, into which we 'Crossed Over' here not so long ago. 

Now, juxtapositions bear fruit when they are balanced - and become sterile when unbalanced. A church always victorious, always successful, always triumphant can quickly become meaningless if it cannot 'carry in (its) mortal body the death of Jesus.' In the same way, a morose and condemning church can often forget to 'make visible the life of Jesus in our bodies." But in balance, there is truth and peace and righteousness!

So we have to live, people of Good Shepherd, in the balance between Promised Land and Wilderness Journey. In the Promised Land, we can see God's gift to us, this wonderful eleven acres, this beautiful building, this sense of place, of home. In the Wilderness Journey we can see, as all Christians have found through the centuries, that this world is NOT our home, we are only passing through, and our race is not yet run. Both of these almost contradictory statements are true. If we accept one and reject the other, we lose. If we embrace both truths, and live in the balance, we will prosper. 

So love this land, but love more the Lord who provides it. Love this building, but consider it a Tabernacle, built for speed not comfort, and not a temple, or, God forbid, a fortress! Love this land, but consider it a Talent, something lent to us by the Master to be put into use, and not a birthright to be held tightly and fallow. 

And in this new year, consider again that we, the people of Good Shepherd, are on a journey of discipleship. We are here, but we're going someplace. There is a circle of life, an eternal return even, but following Jesus there  is a beginning, a middle, and an end. That's not a contradiction, it's a juxtaposition. And it's the truth. Happy New Year, and we'll see you this week!